Adrenals and kidneys

As I work through day 3 of coming off florinef, I’ve been reading a little bit about adrenal glands and adrenal insufficiency/fatigue. There are contradicting statements out there about avoiding salt (because most people with adrenal insufficiency have high blood pressure) and whether or not to take corticosteroids, which is what florinef is.

One of things I remembered and read some more about is the Traditional Chinese Medicine approach to the adrenal glands. In TCM, adrenal symptoms are viewed as kidney symptoms. Deficient adrenals can be deficient kidney essence. With that in mind, I started taking Renavive again (actually I started yesterday 1 pill in the morning and read in more detail today) to give my kidneys a little extra support while I withdraw from florinef.

My body is not loving the changes as I go through them. My temperature is still cycling between very cold and very hot and sweaty. My internal temperature was a little elevated for part of the day, 99.2 deg F. Not enough to worry, but I guess I was worried about a fever so I took my temperature.

I keep thinking my blood pressure is fine. And it sort of is. I’m not dizzy or off balance anymore. That was mostly on Friday. No more visual disturbances (just the usual light sensitivity). I’m still craving salt and water, but that’s not new. What is troubling is that when I’m upright, either sitting or standing for any length of time, my breathing gets labored and I have a mild compression feeling in my chest. I’m guessing this is the transition my cardiovascular system needs to make.

I’m exhausted, too. I was up 6 or 7 times last night with big sweats and bathroom trips. My water regulation systems were totally off. I didn’t sleep well at all, with lots of vivid dreams punctuated by periods of wakefulness. I caught up today with a series of naps, each one in the 1-2 hour range. Not that I had a choice, I was falling asleep after each meal or short-lived activity (like showering).

I’ve still got the head cold, which has now migrated into my ears (popping noises and ear pain). I keep having sneezing fits. My throat and sinuses burn. My intestines still make me think of a swamp with what they’re emitting.

But mostly I’m tired. My aches and pains aren’t terrible and only in my major joints (shoulders, elbows, hips and knees). I had some tingling in my right arm today, armpit to fingertips, but only for a few minutes.

Hi
I am subscribed to your blog and the word ‘adrenal’ really grabbed my attention. I’m almost positive that adrenal fatigue is one of my problems and I think I may have to address it first.
But…
I was under the impression that it was LOW blood pressure not high that was the usual for adrenal insufficiency.
Can you point me in the direction of this information? If not, that’s OK. I understand with Lyme and adrenal problems you may not be able to. I have to say no a lot.
Anyway, best wishes on your recovery. I’ll be following it.

I’ve met folks with high blood pressure who have adrenal fatigue and seen it mentioned on a variety of websites. But I can’t say definitively. It may be because people have multiple problems at the same time leading to adrenal fatigue. My favorite book on the subject is “From Fatigued to Fantastic” by Jacob Teitelbaum. I haven’t tried all his remedies, but his explanations of how things work is very helpful.